Antlers

[Gail & Bogey]

Just wondering about differences in quality of antlers. Bogey loves his antlers and is on his third one. I keep buying bigger ones as he grows. I'm very adamant that all his food comes from US and the last antler I bought said from USA. This Christmas he got a new one as a gift and I have no idea where it came from - should I worry or all antlers created equal?

[Lori, Quincy & Frankie]

No idea- interesting post to follow for answers! 

[Emily, Bentley, & Maserati]

For our doodles we only use Moose antlers per the recommendation of the Alaskan Natives who has an entire shop of antlers for sale. Moose are more dense, and are safer for large dogs with more powerful jaws. Elk & Caribo are great for dogs too, but medium/small as they are more pours and are easier to break. 

Our antlers are all harvested here in Alaksa, but if I was to purchase them I too, would make sure they were from the USA. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I imagine there are antlers from China, but I haven't seen them. The ones I have purchased are labeled product of USA, or they're purchased in a store that only sells products sourced in North America. Is it possible for you to ask where the antler came from?

The ones I buy are also labeled with size recommendations, i.e. weight and chewing habits of the dog. JD only gets those labeled for heavy chewers over 80 lbs. 

Emily is correct in that elk antlers are harder than deer antlers. I've seen conflicting information on whether moose antlers are harder or softer, but I'm going to continue to research that; moose antlers are harder to find in mo0st areas, so it's unlikely that you'll have to worry about that anyway. 

When choosing antlers, I;ve found that you have to look at the thickness of the white portion around the marrow on the cut ends; for JD, it's not enough for the antler itself to be think, the hard white ring around the marrow (when looking at a cross section) has to be thick, too, or he can actually splinter them! 

We have lots and lots of discussions and info here in TFG about antlers.

This one has a LOT of info: http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topics/need-yo...

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

Do they even have deer and elk with similar antlers native to China?  I know there are reindeer up in Russia but not sure about China :p  The cost to ship the antlers from N. America or Europe to China for processing would be prohibitive I would think.

Anyway - Luna is only 38 lbs. or so, but we give her really thick ones because she is a strong chewer.  She's had her elk antler for about 3 years now, deer antler for a year.  The deer antler is definitely wearing faster than the elk antler.